NEW YORK – The BIG EAST announced annual regular-season awards for women’s lacrosse on Wednesday, one day prior to the start of the conference championship. Four-time regular-season champion Florida took home the lion’s share of honors, including four major awards and seven All-BIG EAST certificates.
Connecticut’s Grace Nolan was voted BIG EAST Attacker of the Year, Florida’s Sydney Pirreca and Marquette’s Grace Gabriel were named Co-Midfielders of the Year, UConn’s Cassie Ekstrom was tabbed Defensive Player of the Year, Florida’s Haley Hicklen was selected Goalkeeper of the Year, Denver’s Quintin Hoch-Bullen and Florida’s Shannon Kavanagh shared Freshman of the Year honors, and Amanda O’Leary and the Gators claimed Coaching Staff of the Year recognition.
Nolan garners Attacker of the Year plaudits for the second time after sharing the accolade in the 2016 season. The senior shattered a bevy of BIG EAST records this year, including single-season points (57), single-season goals (46), career points (150) and career goals (99) in conference play. Nolan also finished fifth all-time with 51 career assists. On a national level, Nolan’s season points (102), points average (6.00), goals (72) and goals average (4.24) rank fourth among all Division I players. Her three highest-scoring games came in BIG EAST play, with 11 points against Cincinnati and Butler, and 10 against a nationally ranked Georgetown squad.
Pirreca becomes the third Gator in the last four seasons to garner Midfielder of the Year accolades. Over nine BIG EAST games, the junior tallied 27 points off 25 goals and two assists, 15 draw controls, six ground balls and four caused turnovers. Florida converted nearly 85 percent of its clear attempts and scooped up nearly 23 ground balls per contest. Pirreca was named BIG EAST Midfielder of the Week this season after totaling eight points against then-No. 1 Maryland.
Gabriel becomes the first major award winner for Marquette. The junior was tabbed BIG EAST Midfielder of the Week four times this season, including following the final weekend of the regular season when she led MU to a win over UConn to qualify for the BIG EAST Championship for the first time. Gabriel stuffed the stat sheet in Marquette’s most successful season to date, averaging 2.67 goals, 3.44 points, 3.22 ground balls, 7.22 shots, 7.00 draws and 2.33 caused turnovers per game, all which rank in the top 10 in the BIG EAST.
Ekstrom becomes the first Defensive Player of the Year out of Connecticut since 2015 and second overall. The senior tied for the BIG EAST lead in caused turnovers with 22 on the season for a 2.44 per game average. She was also listed second in ground balls per game (3.44). Ekstrom had two performances of five caused turnovers and three with at least six ground balls.
Hicklen was voted BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year for the second straight season. The junior posted the top goals against average (7.85) and save percentage (.505) among the league’s everyday starters. She held six conference opponents to six goals or less, including a shutout in the season finale. Hicklen also posted a notable non-conference performance, making 16 saves as the Gators won at No. 3 North Carolina in early March.
Hoch-Bullen had the top goals average by a rookie this season at 2.56 per game. The freshman enters the postseason on a 14-game point-scoring streak, recording at least one point in all nine BIG EAST contests, including a pair of six-point outings. She tied for the Denver lead with 31 points in conference play.
Kavanagh posted a rookie-high 3.78 points per game in nine BIG EAST performances to rank sixth among all league players. The freshman also finished fourth in assists per game (1.89) and fifth in draws per contest (5.56). Her points total (34) ranked second on Florida in league play. Kavanagh and Hoch-Bullen each earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors twice this season.
Led by head coach Amanda O’Leary, the Gators were tabbed Coaching Staff of the Year for the third consecutive year. Florida completed its third consecutive unbeaten BIG EAST slate, going 9-0 to improve to 31-1 in four years of BIG EAST play. The Gators outscored their league foes by nearly 100 goals, 160-66, holding seven of nine opponents to 10 goals or less to lead the BIG EAST with a 7.34 goals against average, while boasting the top scoring clip of 17.78. On a national level, Florida has ranked in the top 10 in both polls all season, peaking at No. 3 for three weeks. The Gators enter the BIG EAST Championship as the No. 1 seed for the fourth straight season.
Nolan, Pirreca, and Gabriel were unanimously selected to the All-BIG EAST First Team, as was Florida’s Lindsey Ronbeck and Cara Trombetta, and Georgetown’s Taylor Gebhardt. The Gators led all teams with seven total All-BIG EAST certificates, including six First Team selections. The Hoyas followed with five total picks (two first team, three second team), while UConn, Denver and Vanderbilt collected four certificates apiece. Marquette had three total selections, Temple had two, and Cincinnati and Villanova picked up one apiece. All-BIG EAST and major award winners are selected by a vote of the BIG EAST’s head coaches who are not allowed to vote for their own players.
BIG EAST Attacker of the Year
Grace Nolan, Connecticut, Sr., A
BIG EAST Co-Midfielders of the Year
Sydney Pirreca, Florida, Jr., M
Grace Gabriel, Marquette, Jr., M
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Cassie Ekstrom, Connecticut, Sr., D
BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year
Haley Hicklen, Florida, Jr., GK
BIG EAST Co-Freshmen of the Year
Quintin Hoch-Bullen, Denver, A
Shannon Kavanagh, Florida, M
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
Florida
All-BIG EAST First Team
Cassie Ekstrom, Connecticut, Sr., D
Grace Nolan, Connecticut, Sr., A*
Julia Feiss, Denver, Jr., A
Kennedy Milburn, Denver, R-Jr., D
Haley Hicklen, Florida, Jr., GK
Shannon Kavanagh, Florida, Fr., M
Shayna Pirreca, Florida, Sr., A
Sydney Pirreca, Florida, Jr., M*
Lindsey Ronbeck, Florida, Jr., A*
Cara Trombetta, Florida, So., D*
Taylor Gebhardt, Georgetown, Jr., A*
Natalia Lynch, Georgetown, So., M
Grace Gabriel, Marquette, Jr., M*
Allison Lane, Marquette, Sr., M
Nicole Latgis, Temple, Sr., D
All-BIG EAST Second Team^
Monica Borzillo, Cincinnati, So., A
Kelsey Catalano, Connecticut, Sr., M
Sydney Watson, Connecticut, Fr., M
Maddie Baum, Denver, Jr., M
Quintin Hoch-Bullen, Denver, Fr., A
Sabrina Cristodero, Florida, Fr., D
Haelle Chomo, Georgetown, Jr., GK
Mollie Miller, Georgetown, Fr., D
Michaela Bruno, Georgetown, So., A
Cate Soccodato, Marquette, Jr., A
Maddie Gebert, Temple, So., M
Julie Blaze, Vanderbilt, Jr., M
Margaret Fee, Vanderbilt, Sr., D
Emily Mathewson, Vanderbilt, So., A
Kayla Peterson, Vanderbilt, Sr., A
Katie Comerford, Villanova, So., A
*unanimous selection
^extra player added due to a tie in voting